This invention relates to apparatus for attaching flora arrangements to clothing, and more particularly to a device for securing the stems of flowers and other flora to the material of a garment in the form of a bouquet. The device can be used for attaching either a single flower or a multiple stem bouquet of two or more flowers or other flora. The invention also relates to a method for attaching flora of different sizes to clothing.
In the past, corsages and bouquets of various types of flora have been attached to garments by inserting a straight pin through the garment, over the stems of the flora, and back into the garment on the other side of the stems. This method of attachment usually leaves the sharp end of the pin exposed on either the front or the rear side of the material where it can catch on other objects and cause injury to the wearer or other persons or damage to clothing. Straight pins also can easily work their way out of a secure position such that the flora arrangement becomes detached from the clothing and lost or damaged.
It is also well known to clamp or insert the stems of flora into an externally mounted structure having prongs which first pierce the clothing material and are then bent back against the underside or rear surface thereof. In such devices and in the conventional pinning method previously described, the clothing material, usually cloth, is backed only by the pin or prongs which pass through the material and across its rear surface. Another disadvantage of the double pronged devices found in the prior art is their inability to readily accommodate a wide variety of different stem sizes and numbers. Previously known devices are usually preshaped for a specific size of flora arrangement and cannot readily accommodate larger or smaller size arrangements.
Prior art pinning devices of the foregoing types are loosely suspended and are relatively free to shift out of position so as to give an unsightly appearance. The thin shaft of a bare pin or prong can also cause the material to pucker and hang in an unsightly manner, and when the device is removed, unsightly folds or wrinkles are left in the cloth or other clothing material. Furthermore, localized stresses present where a thin shaft pierces unsupported material can result in easily tearing or ripping the garment, especially where efforts to attach or remove such devices are made in a hurried manner. Another problem with such prior art devices is their inability to shield the sharply pointed end or ends of the pins or prongs so that they do not hook other parts of the clothing, prick the wearer, or otherwise cause a safety hazard.